Consumer products

ABSTRACT

The present invention is a business card holder that includes a business card cradle and a support leg. The support leg is substantially flat and includes a large branding area. In the preferred embodiment, this branding area is a surface sunken into the support leg. The business card cradle includes a second branding area that, preferably, is also a sunken surface.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The applicant hereby claims benefit of U.S. Provisional PatentApplication No. 61/201,663 (filed Dec. 12, 2008). The specification ofsaid provisional patent application is incorporated herein by thisreference as though set forth in full.

STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT

Not Applicable

FIELD OF INVENTION

The present invention relates to desktop accessories. In particular, thepresent invention relates to business card holders.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Business cards are cards bearing business information about a company orindividual. A business card typically includes the giver's name, companyaffiliation and contact information such as street address, telephonenumber, e-mail address and website. Use of business cards in the UnitedStates and elsewhere is very common. Most business people utilizebusiness cards to introduce themselves to others.

In the United States, the standard-sized business card is 2 by 3-and-½inches. The sizes of standard business cards vary from country tocountry, but most are from 74 to 90 millimeters wide and from 50 to 55millimeters high. Because a business card is small, a potential customercan easily store a business card for later use.

Frequently, people or businesses chose to display their business cardsin business card holders on desks, counters and other flat, horizontalsurfaces. They do this so that prospective customers can take thebusiness cards and so that business cards are always on hand. Because ofthe popularity of business card holders, business card holdersthemselves can be used as promotional gifts. However, very few desktopbusiness card holders are appropriate for this purpose because mostbusiness card holders have limited room to imprint advertising.

The present invention offers a low-cost business card holder design thatprovides significant space to imprint advertising. In particular, thebusiness card holder of the present invention provides multiple,substantial branding areas that can be viewed from opposing directions.At the same time, the entire design can be manufactured as a singlepiece of plastic.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is a business card holder that includes a businesscard cradle and a support leg. The support leg is connected to the topof the business card cradle and maintains the business card cradle in anupright and functional position when the business card holder is placedon a flat, horizontal position. When the business card holder is in use,both the business card cradle and the support leg rest on the flat,horizontal surface. In practice, this flat, horizontal surface might bea desktop or countertop.

The support leg is substantially flat and includes a large brandingarea. In the preferred embodiment, this branding area is a surfacesunken into the support leg. Typically, the branding area is rectangularin shape.

The business card cradle includes a second branding area that,preferably, is similar to the first branding area in shape and design.By including two branding areas on the same business card holder,branding can be seen from opposing directions. Generally, the entiredesign (not including branding labels) can be molded as a single pieceof plastic, thereby making manufacture simple and inexpensive.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above and other objects and advantages of the present invention willbe apparent upon consideration of the following detailed description,taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which referencecharacters refer to like parts throughout, and in which:

FIG. 1 is a frontal perspective view of a business card holder;

FIG. 2 is a top view of the business card holder;

FIG. 3 is a side view of the business card holder;

FIG. 4 is a rear view of the business card holder;

FIG. 5 is a front view of the business card holder;

FIG. 6 is a bottom view of the business card holder;

FIG. 7 is a rear perspective view of the business card holder;

FIG. 8 is a side perspective view of the business card holder.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

FIG. 1 provides a frontal perspective view of the present invention.FIG. 1 shows a business card holder 1 that has been formed from a singlepiece of material, preferably a plastic such as ABS. However, othertypes of material and manufacture can be used to make the presentinvention. The business card holder comprises a business card cradle 2and a support leg 3. The tops of the business card cradle 2 and thesupport leg 3 are connected together such that the two structures forman angle. It is preferred that said angle is acute. Preferably, theangle is between 15 and 30 degrees. More preferably, the angle isbetween 20 and 25 degrees, while, in the example shown in FIG. 1, theangle is approximately 23 degrees. For ease of manufacturing, it ispreferred that the business card cradle 2 and the support leg 3 areconnected by a rounded bridge 4 that extends the length of the tops ofthe business card cradle 2 and the support leg 3.

As can be seen in FIG. 1, the business card cradle 2 comprises asubstantially flat, rectangular back card-holding panel 5. It ispreferred that this back card-holding panel 5 is less than 4 incheswide. It is also preferred that the back card-holding panel 5 is lessthan 2 and ½ inches high (not including the rounded bridge). The backcard-holding panel 5 can be of any thickness, although it will generallybe greater than 1/16 of an inch and less than ⅛ of an inch. This mayvary depending on the type of material used to construct the presentinvention.

As can also be seen in FIG. 1, the business card cradle 2 is configuredto accept and hold business cards in a tidy fashion. In the preferredembodiment, the business card cradle 2 comprises the back card-holdingpanel 5 and a front card-holding panel 6. It is preferred that the backcard-holding panel 5 and the front card-holding panel 6 are held insubstantially parallel planes, thereby forming a gap between the twostructures. In the example shown in FIG. 1, the back card-holding panel5 and the front card-holding panel 6 are held in their respective planesby a right side wall 12, left side wall (not shown in FIG. 1) and cardsupporting structure (not shown clearly in FIG. 1). The gap between theback card-holding panel 5 and the front card-holding panel 6 willgenerally be large enough to accommodate a plurality of business cardsbut will be small enough so that, when only a few business cards areleft, the business cards will still stand upright. In the example shownby the figures herein, the gap is about ½ of an inch.

It is preferred that the front card-holding panel 6 is substantiallyflat and is substantially the same width as the back card-holding panel5. The front card-holding panel 6 should be tall enough to hold businesscards securely within the gap. At the same time, it is preferred thatthe front card-holding panel 6 is short enough so that, when facing thefront of the business card holder 1, potential customers can see thebusiness cards inside the business card cradle 2. In the preferredembodiment, the front card-holding panel 6 is about 1½ high.

The out-facing wall of the front card-holding panel 6 further comprisesa front branding area 7. Advertising, trademarks and other product orcompany information can be imprinted or otherwise marked on the frontbranding area 7. It is preferred that the front branding area 7comprises most of the outward-facing surface of the front card-holdingpanel 6. In fact, it is preferred that the front branding area 7comprise at least 80% of the outward-facing surface of the frontcard-holding panel. In the preferred embodiment, the front branding area7 comprises a sunken, substantially flat surface disposed within thefront card-holding panel 6. It is preferred that the sunken surface issubstantially rectangular with rounded corners. In the preferredembodiment, the sunken surface is configured to accept adhesive labelsthat bear the desired branding. By using labels, the user can benefitfrom more elaborate and decorative printing processes, such as afour-color process. It should be noted that the sunken surface has notbeen given its own reference number because, in the particular exampleshown in FIG. 1, the sunken surface is coextensive with the frontbranding area 7.

FIG. 7 provides a rear perspective view of the business card holder 1.FIG. 7 shows the back card-holding panel 5, the front card-holding panel6 and the rounded bridge 4. FIG. 7 further shows the left side wall 8that forms part of the business card cradle 2.

FIG. 7 also shows outward-facing side of the support leg 3. As can beseen, the support leg 3 is substantially flat and substantiallyrectangular. As can also be seen in FIG. 7, the outward-facing side ofthe support leg 3 comprises a rear branding area 9. Similar to the frontbranding area 7, the rear branding area 9 comprises a sunken surfacedisposed within the outward-facing side of support leg 3. The rearbranding area 9 is substantially rectangular and substantially flat. Itis preferred that the corners of the sunken surface are rounded. In thepreferred embodiment, the sunken surface is between 3 and 3-and-½ incheswide and between 1-and-½ and 2 high. Similar to the sunken surface thatforms the front branding area 7, the sunken surface that forms the rearbranding area 9 is configured to accept adhesive labels that bear thedesired branding. As can also be seen, the rear branding area 9 takes upa majority of the surface of the outward-facing side of the support leg3. It is preferred that the rear branding area 9 takes up at least 80%of the surface of said outward-facing side.

FIG. 8 provides a side perspective view of the business card holder.Shown in FIG. 8 is the rounded bridge 4. FIG. 8 further shows moreclearly the structure of the business card cradle 1. As mentioned above,the business card holder is constructed in part by the right side wall12 and the left side wall 8. The primary purpose of the right side wall12 and the left side wall 8 is to keep the business cards from slippingout the sides of the cradle. FIG. 8 also shows the card supportstructure. In the example provided, the card support structure comprisesa plurality of flat-topped ridges (13, 14 and 15). The business cardsthat are placed into the business card cradle will rest neatly on top ofthe flat-topped ridges. When the business card holder is in use, it ispreferred that the top edges of the side walls are elevated higher thanthe top edges of the ridges so that the business cards will not slip outon the side. The curvature of the bottoms of the flat-topped ridges(i.e., where the ridges meet the business card holder bottom 11) formssemi-circles.

FIG. 2 provides a top view of the business card holder. From thisperspective, one can see the front branding area 7, the top of the frontcard-holding panel 6, the top of the rounded bridge 4, the rear brandingarea 9, the top of the right side wall 12 and the top of the left sidewall 8. The business card cradle bottom 11 of the business card cradlecan also be seen. It is from the business card cradle bottom 11 that theflat-top ridges (13, 14 and 15) protrude. The business card cradlebottom 11 also serves to connect the front card-holding panel 6 to theback card-holding panel 5. In the example shown in FIG. 2, theupper-side of the business card cradle bottom 11 is sliced into fourtroughs by the flat-topped ridges. The curvature of the surface of theupper-side of the business card cradle bottom 11 follows the curvatureseen in the side walls (8 and 12). In other words, the curvature of saidsurface forms a semi-circle in each of the four troughs.

FIG. 3 is provides a side view of the business card holder 1. From thisview, one can clearly see the shape of the left side wall 8. Preferably,the side walls are rounded at the bottom as shown. The side walls areflush against the business card cradle bottom 11, the front card-holdingpanel 6, and the back card-holding panel 5. The approximately 23 degreeangle between the support leg and the panel 2 can also be seen.Furthermore, as can be observed from FIG. 3, the outward surface of thesupport leg 3 and the outward surface of the front card-holding panel 6face slightly upward. This, in turn, causes the surfaces of the twobranding areas to face slightly upward.

FIG. 4 provides a rear view of the business card holder 1. From this,the preferred shape of the rear branding area 9 can be seen.

FIG. 5 provides a front view of the business card holder 1. From this,the preferred shape of the front branding area 7 can be seen.

FIG. 6 provides a bottom view of the business card holder 1. From this,the underside of the business card cradle bottom 11 can be seen. Whenthe business card holder is placed on a flat, horizontal surface (suchas a desktop or countertop), the business card holder will rest on thebottom edge of the support leg 3 and the underside of the business cardcradle bottom 11.

It is preferred that the business card holder is configured to rest on aflat surface such that the business card holder is supported by thebusiness card cradle 2 and the support leg 3. The business card holderis further configured such that, when the business card holder iscorrectly positioned on a flat surface (such as the top of a desk),business cards can be maintained inside the cradle. In the preferredembodiment, when the business card holder is correctly positioned on aflat surface, the surfaces of both branding areas will face upward andoutward.

One of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the techniques,structures and methods of the present invention above are exemplary. Thepresent invention can be implemented in various embodiments withoutdeviating from the scope of the invention.

1. A business card holder comprising: a business card cradle; and asupport leg connected to said business card cradle for holding saidbusiness card cradle in position when the business card holder is inuse.
 2. The business card holder of claim 1, wherein said support leghas a support-leg outer face and said support-leg outer face comprises arear branding area.
 3. The business card holder of claim 2, wherein mostof said support-leg outer face is taken up by said rear branding area.4. The business card holder of claim 3, wherein said rear branding areacomprises a rear sunken surface.
 5. The business card holder of claim 4,wherein said rear sunken surface is substantially rectangular.
 6. Thebusiness card holder of claim 1, wherein said business card cradlecomprises a back panel and a front panel and wherein said back panel isconnected to said support leg.
 7. The business card holder of claim 6,wherein said front panel and said back panel form a gap in whichstandard business cards can be inserted.
 8. The business card holder ofclaim 7, wherein said front panel and said back panel are in parallelplanes.
 9. The business card holder of claim 6, wherein said front paneland back panel are connected by a business card support structure. 10.The business card holder of claim 9, wherein said business card supportstructure comprises a plurality of ridges to support business cards. 11.The business card holder of claim 10, wherein each ridge of saidplurality of ridges has a flat top.
 12. The business card holder ofclaim 9, wherein said front panel and said back panel are furtherconnected by a plurality of side panels.
 13. The business card holder ofclaim 2, wherein said front panel comprises a front-panel outer face andsaid front-panel outer face comprises a front branding area.
 14. Thebusiness card holder of claim 13, wherein most of said front-panel outerface is taken up by said front branding area.
 15. The business cardholder of claim 14, wherein said front branding area comprises a frontsunken surface.
 16. The business card holder of claim 15, wherein saidfront sunken surface is substantially rectangular.
 17. The business cardholder of claim 1, wherein said business card cradle and said supportleg are formed as a single piece of plastic.
 18. The business cardholder of claim 1, wherein said business card cradle and said supportleg form an acute angle. 1-13. (canceled)